Wednesday, May 24, 2017

I was already watchful when it came to choosing the products that I use and the food that I eat when I was still single. But when I became a mom, I became extra vigilant. I wanted to make sure that I always give the best and the safest to my kids.

Then, I learned that my firstborn son had sensitive skin. He also doesn’t like strong smells. We had to change the baby products that we bought from the supermarket to products that are recommended by his pedia-dermatologist. Then, I had two more children. They also have sensitive skin.

Since all of my kids’ skin have adverse reactions to the usual baby toiletries, it always makes me happy whenever I discover baby products that have natural ingredients. But these kinds of products can be costly. So, I am always searching the market for baby or kid-friendly products that are made from natural ingredients and at the same time easy on the pocket.

That’s why I was happy to discover Belo Baby talc-free powder. It’s made with all-natural ingredients and no harmful chemicals. It’s also hypoallergenic and dermatologist-tested. It’s made from finely milled rice and maize powders that absorb moisture to keep baby’s skin, soft, fresh and dry. It’s carefully formulated without talc, gluten, phthalates, parabens, dyes, and most common allergens.

This is great news for a mom like me with active, energetic kids who are all boys! My boys sweat a lot because they are always on the go. My eldest and my youngest sons have the most sensitive skins. They get skin rashes when there are sudden changes in the weather. My eldest son’s skin is no longer as sensitive as when he was still a baby or a toddler. What a relief! But his skin is still sensitive than most people. He is also susceptible to allergies. My youngest, who is still a toddler, develops skin rashes when he perspires a lot.

Thus, I’m glad that I found this talc-free powder. And because it’s talc-free, I am worry-free! It does not have a strong smell that can irritate our sensitive noses, too. On top of all these, it’s also affordable! Perfect! It’s a product that’s crafted with care for the most delicate skin, for the most meticulous moms!

BLOG GIVEAWAY

This great news is not only for me because I’m giving away three (3) Belo Baby talc-free powder gift packs! It’s so easy to win. Click here for the mechanics.

I will announce the winners on May 30, 2017.

Belo Baby Talc-free Powder is now available in leading supermarkets and department stores nationwide. It comes in a very cute packaging that includes a soft puff. You can also buy it here and enjoy FREE delivery until May 31 with a minimum purchase.

For more information about this product and the line of products from Belo Baby, check out:

Thursday, March 30, 2017

Do you ache to bond with your child/children but could not, because you are too busy at work or in your business?

Do you want to know how you can be a hands-on parent even when you feel that you don’t have enough time in your hands to make that happen?

Do you want to learn how to achieve balance in juggling your time between being a parent and an employee/freelancer/entrepreneur?

Do you want to be successful both in your family life and in your career/business?

Do you want your visions for your family life and finances to become your reality?

Do you need help in structuring your time so that you can spend your precious time bonding with your child/children and still move closer if not achieve your finance goals?

I have great news for you, fellow parents! We're having the second run of the Hands-On Parents while Earning (H.O.P.E.) Summit on April 22, 2017, at the Bulwagang Haribon, Insular Life Corporate Center in Alabang. It's a whole day workshop where parents like you and me will have a lot of opportunities to learn.

God gave me this burden in my heart to ache for families who are disconnected and children are lost and confused because their parents are not able to connect with them and guide them well in their growing up years. I'm thankful to God that He gave me the grace to do something to help solve this problem in our society one family at a time through my iHOPE Coaching Program and through the H.O.P.E. Summit.

Here are the 5 main benefits that parents can get out of this learning event/workshop.

Parents will have an opportunity to clarify their priorities at this time in their life and align their schedules with their priorities.

People sometimes think that they know their priorities. But surprisingly, when I run these workshops, people take some time before they are able to write down and rank the top 5 things that are important to them. Moreover, during my workshops, they discover that they are not using their time wisely so that it reflects their priorities in life. Thus, with these realizations, my participants usually become eager to learn strategies and tips that would enable them to live out their priorities through better use of their time.

Parents will learn to come up with a list of new habits that they can easily and consistently implement after the workshop so they can be more involved in their children’s lives.

I like handling workshops because I like my participants to learn by doing. It's a better way to help them learn. Through the exercises that I ask my participants to answer, they get insights into their own lives. The exercises also help them to use the strategies and tips that I share with them. That's the advantage of workshops over seminars only where the speaker just talks and the audience simply listen. That is also why I do my best to make my learning events interactive. We learn more by doing.

Parents will discover ways to work smarter so they can free up more time in their schedules to bond with their children.

I've always advocated for this. I believe that if people know how to work smarter, they would be able to maximize their time. I had been an HR practitioner for decades now. I have seen many employees work long hours but not produce the desired results required of them. I have also seen many employees work efficiently in less the time. I like hiring and keeping employees who are more productive than those who spend too much time and the company's resources but are not efficient in their jobs. I'm glad that I found a way to teach these principles and skills to parents also through learning events like the H.O.P.E. Summit.

Moms and dads will be inspired to be hands-on even while earning for their families and will learn tips and strategies on how to be successful in their careers/businesses through the stories of the featured moms and dads (guest panelists) in the H.O.P.E. Summit.

Like in the first H.O.P.E. Summit, we have invited parents who are already living out the H.O.P.E. lifestyle. There will be work-from-home moms and dads and business owners in our panel again this year. I'm excited to hear their stories, strategies and tips!

Parents will have a chance to meet and interact with like-minded parents who also desire to become hands-on parents while earning to their children.

On top of learning from the speakers and guest panelists, parents will also learn from their interaction with fellow parents. In HR, we call this benchmarking. Since this is a parenting event, this will be called networking with fellow parents. One of the benefits of attending workshops and learning events like the H.O.P.E. Summit is that participants learn through their discussions with fellow participants as well. Sometimes, we learn by talking about our experiences and insights more. Plus, we get inspired and encouraged when we hear the stories of other parents.

I had been running time management, goal-setting and work-life balance workshops for decades. I've always enjoyed and looked forward to these workshops because I know that every time I run these kinds of workshops, I'm making a big difference not only in the lives of my participants but also in the lives of their family members.

So, let me invite you to join me and our guest speaker and panelists at the H.O.P.E. Summit 2017. I assure you that it would not be only worth your time and investment but it would be life-changing for you and your family!

Here's a testimonial from one of the moms who attended the first H.O.P.E. Summit.

I will give two talks. My talk in the morning will be How to Manage Your Time So You Can Be a Hands-On Parent while Earning. The one in the afternoon is How to Earn Full-Time Income Through Freelancing. I have been a freelance speaker, writer, editor and consultant for almost a decade now. I will be sharing tips on how parents can earn a good income while enjoying the perks of being a freelancer.

My friend Mariel's talk will be How to Practice Positive Discipline. She's also a homeschooling mom and a mompreneur like me. I'm excited to learn from her, too. Her talks on this topic were usually in Quezon City. That's why my husband and I are not able to attend most of the time. So, I took this chance to invite her to speak at the H.O.P.E. Summit which will be held in the southern part of the metro.

Another good news is that you can still avail of the early bird rate. You can save P500 on your ticket if you buy your ticket on or before March 31, 2017. If you are coming as a couple, you save as much as P1,000! Click here to secure your seat. If you are coming as a couple, you may get your ticket here. You can also avail of our group rate. If you are a group of four (4) parents, you can pay P8,000 only and that would be savings for each one of you.

You can pay via Paypal (using your credit card or as a guest even if you don't have a Paypal account) or bank deposits (BPI or BDO).

The registration fee already includes the hand-outs, lunch, light snacks and giveaways from some of our sponsors. Merry Macarons will provide our snacks in the afternoon.

More Reasons to go to #HOPESummit2017

The first 20 parents to register and pay will receive a gift certificate worth P3,000 from Kids Acts Philippines, a performing school for kids who love theater. Noel Comia Jr. who won in the previous Aliw Awards and a semi-finalist in The Voice Kids PH was trained in this theater group. This is timely since it's almost summer time and theater classes will start soon.

We are giving out Hands-On Parent while Earning customized bags to the first 20 parents who will register and pay. This is courtesy of our sponsors My Little Ikbi. This bag would be perfect for the giveaways that participants will get from our sponsors like Moringana and Shepherd's Voice Publications.

Insular Life is also giving away one (1) storybook per parent who will attend the event.

We will also raffle off books from Shepherd's Voice Publication and gift certificates from Kindermusik by Teacher Suzette and Friends.

We encourage you to register for the H.O.P.E. Summit 2017 before we run out of slots. Register here now.

Monday, March 13, 2017

People think that being gifted makes one's life easy. The truth is that gifted people also have their share of difficulties.

Let me share some examples with you.

I had not been sleeping well for the past nights. I wanted so much to sleep early. But I couldn't. Why? I found it hard to make my brain stop working. My brain has been so active. I could not fall asleep even though my body was exhausted. I had so many ideas. I wished I had a wire or something that allows my brain to transfer those thoughts to my computer so I would remember all those ideas the following day and I could sleep soundly at night.

It's great to have a lot of wonderful ideas for upcoming work projects. But it gets overwhelming and I wish that they would come at a time when I'm not supposed to be sleeping already.

In fact, I'm having a headache as I write this post because I could not go back to sleep even if I want to.

Sleep has been an elusive friend to me. I found it difficult to nap when I was still a child. When I was a child, I would just pretend that I'm sleeping and wait until I hear my grandmother snore. ;) That's the only time I open my eyes and I start moving again in my bed.

When I became an adult, there were many nights when I experienced insomnia.

Thus, I'm not surprised that my kids are not the type who easily fall asleep whether in the afternoon for naps or at night. Like me, they have a lot of ideas going on in their heads. Or they'd rather read than sleep.

In spite of this knowledge and the struggles, I still do my best to help my kids get as much sleep as they can. I don't force my eldest who is now 8 years old to take a nap, except when I know that he is under the weather. But I still require my younger kids to take a nap. If they really could not fall asleep in the afternoon, I just ask them to read quietly in their beds. Now, reading is something that they can obey easily. But "quietly" is another story!

Another difficulty of the gifted is knowing things that are not pleasant (to say the least) because the gifted are highly intuitive and insightful. Gifted people may have the ability to read or identify other people's motives and intentions even if these people try their best to hide these. I have personally experienced this countless times. I am amazed at how correct my intuition is a lot of times. But this is not always a positive experience because some of the things I notice or realize can cause me to be disappointed, hurt, angry or sad. It doesn't help that gifted people are also extra sensitive.

There are many other difficulties that gifted people deal with on a daily basis. But I will just mention one more which I and my gifted kids need to deal with daily: containing and managing our big emotions.

Gifted people are quite intense. We usually have big emotions. I used to think that I can do a good job at handling my emotions. But when I became a parent of gifted kids, I discovered that dealing with my kids and the chaos that they bring into our home can overwhelm me many times during the day. I lose my temper at least once a day. The very organized me gets easily annoyed and overstimulated by my very messy, imaginative and kinesthetic kids. That is why "Slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love" has been my mantra for years now. That means I have a lot to improve on in this area. And that's not just for me but for my kids also. The more that I learn to manage my big emotions even when I'm triggered by their noise and mess, the more effective I will be in helping my kids learn to manage their own emotions. I think this is one of my most difficult challenges at this point in my life as a parent.

Last night, I read a blog post that reminded me to parent with grace rather than anger. I think I really need a lot of that... grace. I realized that it's not easy to control these intense emotions even when you are already aware of your tendencies. I'm doing my best to practice restraint and to be more mindful. I'm also doing my best to teach my kids to be more considerate of the people around them, I included.

So, are you surprised to read about these difficulties that gifted people experience? Find out more as you read the entries of the other bloggers in our blog hop here.

Welcome Message from the Author

This blog I created features a no holds bar discussion of all my thoughts, feelings and experiences about motherhood -- fromthe time that I was pregnant up to my experiences as a stay-at-home mom turned work-at-home mom, from giving birth concerns to baby products and so much more. Whatever busy moms like me think about daily or every now and then, that's what you'll read in this blog.

Enjoy reading!

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